Italian Flag PNG
The flag of Italy is a vertically striped green-white-red tricolor. The vertical pales are equally sized. Additionally, civil ensign, state ensign, and navy ensign feature emblems in the center.
A lot of different flags have been used on the territory of modern-day Italy since at least the 1200s. However, the nation wasn’t unified, so it wasn’t possible to talk about a flag representing all these areas as a single whole until at least the end of the 18th century.
| Colors | HEX Code (approximation) | Pantone | CMYK (approximation) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Green | #008C45 | 17-6153 TCX | 100, 0, 51, 45 |
| White | #F4F9FF | 11-0601 TCX | 4, 2, 0, 0 |
| Red | #CD212A | 18-1662 TCX | 0, 84, 80, 20 |
History of the Flag
Similar to many other tricolor banners, the Italian flag was inspired by the French one, which was immensely popular during the Revolution in 1790 on French Navy warships. As the revolutionary ideas spread, so did the symbols.
Historians count the origin of the Italian flag from 21 August 1789, when demonstrators in the Republic of Genoa were spotted wearing cockades made of red, white, and green ribbons. These decorations were inspired by French cockades, just the original blue was replaced with green. At least that’s when the palette combining red, white, and green was introduced.
The oldest documented reference to the flag itself is connected to Napoleon Bonaparte’s entry to Italy. The very first area to be conquered was Piedmont. In a document dated 13 May 1796, which has been preserved in the historical archive of one of the local municipalities, there are lines saying that on three towers in the city center, there were municipal banners hoisted. The document originally described the banner as a combination of green, white, and red. However, the word “green” was later crossed and replaced by “blue,” making the banner sound like the French flag.
A more straightforward piece of evidence refers to the fall of 1796. When Napoleon wrote to the Directorate about the birth of the Lombard Legion, he stated that the legion had a war flag comprised of red, white, and green elements. So, the Lombard Legion is considered the first military entity in Italia to have the tricolor as its banner. However, we’re not talking about a real national flag yet.
As Napoleon was moving forward and occupying more regions, the red, white, and green banner was introduced in many places. First, as a military flag symbolizing political innovation, and then – as a civil flag.
In early 1797, the tricolor was adopted as a flag of a sovereign Italian state, the Cispadane Republic. The proposal came from deputy Giuseppe Compagnoni (1754–1833), an Italian constitutionalist and writer. As a result, Compagnoni is now referred to as the “father of the Italian flag.” Originally, the stripes were positioned horizontally, so it still wasn’t the current Italian flag yet.
In 1797, the Cisalpine Republic was formed from the Cispadane Republic and the Transpadane Republic. In 1798, the vertical flag was introduced combining red, white, and green. In July that year, the formal celebration of the birth of the new republic took place, during which Napoleon gave the flag to the republic’s military units.
1802 – 1805
When the Cisalpine Republic was renamed the Napoleonic Italian Republic, its flag was also modified. While the colors remained unchanged, the arrangement was totally different. In the center, there was a green square. It was placed inside a white square standing on its corner. The outer square was red.
Historians assume that it was during the first two decades of the 19th century that the tricolor flag became a universal symbol of Italy. Although the details of the design were still modified, the very combination of green, red, and white got its status as an unequivocal emblem of Italy, not just a mere derivative of the French flag.
1805 – 1814
Napoleon once again renamed the state, this time as the first Napoleonic Kingdom of Italy. The flag was obviously inspired by the previous one, with a couple of tweaks. First, the proportions were changed – now, the banner had a rectangular shape. Also, in the middle, the golden Napoleonic eagle could be seen. It was in use while Napoleon stayed in power, until 1814.
1814 – 1849
Following the restoration of European monarchies, the Italian flag was banned. Moreover, by law, anyone who displayed the tricolor in the Kingdom of Lombardy-Venetia had to face the death sentence.
As a result, the tricolor became a powerful symbol of the forces striving for independence and unification of Italy. It appeared in the Cittadella of Alessandria in 1821 as a result of the revolutions of the 1820s. During the revolutions of 1830, the flag was extensively used by Ciro Menotti, who led the rebellion. In 1831, it was adopted by Giuseppe Mazzini to symbolize Young Italy, a political force aiming to unite the country.
The tricolor was used during the uprisings in Sicily in 1837, in Abruzzo in 1841, and in Romagna in 1843, as well as the revolutions of 1848. It could be seen on the ship that delivered Giuseppe Garibaldi to Italy from South America following the beginning of the First Italian War of Independence.
In 1848, the Grand Duchy of Tuscany let the Tuscan militias use a tricolor scarf next to the symbols of the Grand Duchy. Eventually, due to the pressure from local patriots, the flag was made the state banner and a military banner in the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, the Duchy of Parma and Piacenza. The next to join in was the Duchy of Modena and Reggio. Over the following years, a flag combining red, white, and green and featuring additional coats of arms became adopted by the Constitutional Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, the Republic of San Marco, and the Roman Republic. It flew over the barricades of the Ten Days of Brescia.
After the end of the First Italian War of Independence and the defeat of the revolutions in 1849, the old flags were re-introduced. It was only the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia that had the tricolor as a legitimate symbol following the War of Independence.
Yet, this flag remained an important symbol unifying the nation and was extensively used under various circumstances. For instance, King Victor Emmanuel II of Piedmont-Sardinia gave this flag to his soldiers departing for the Crimean War in 1855.
The flag spread during the Second Italian War of Independence. It was adopted by the temporary government of the United Provinces of Central Italy and the Expedition of the Thousand (1860–1861) led by Giuseppe Garibaldi.
1861 – 1946
In March 1861, the Kingdom of Italy was proclaimed, which was the beginning of the unified country. The new political entity chose the flag of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia as its national flag. It featured the elements from the coat of arms of the former Royal House of Savoy. This version of the tricolor is considered the country’s first national flag.
1946 – present
On 13 June 1946, the Italian Republic was proclaimed, while king Umberto II left into exile. The same day, the tricolor featuring the coat of arms of the Royal House of Savoy was lowered. Instead, the republic adopted a vertical triband, in which green, white, and red stripes were the only elements (no coat of arms).
The new flag was introduced by the decree of the president of the Council of Ministers No. 1 of 19 June 1946 and later supported by the Constituent Assembly in 1947. The assembly supplemented the Italian Constitution with the description of the flag.
Meaning of Symbols and Colors
The triband structure, which was inspired by the French Revolution, conveys the idea of political and social innovations. Some sources state that the green color made its way to the flag from the uniforms of the Milanese civic guards. However, the more widely spread opinion claims that green was originally used in the flag to represent natural rights, including social equality and freedom.
Over the Napoleonic era, a different interpretation was offered to the public: green stood for hope, white for faith, and red for love. This explanation references the three theological virtues.
A “geographical-historical” explanation states that the green was inspired by the meadows and the Mediterranean maquis, the white stands for the snow of the Alps, while the red is the color of the blood spilled by those who had fought for independence.
Interestingly, some researchers explain the addition of the green color by Napoleon’s love for Corsica, where he was born. The red and white colors, apart from the French tricolor, were used on the flag of the city of Milan, so this could also be a source of inspiration for the flag. Moreover, there’s even a Masonic hypothesis.
Whatever the meaning of separate parts, the flag as a whole has been a symbol of Italian unification and independence.
Use of the Flag
The national flag is free of any coats of arms. For the civil ensign, a slightly different version is used featuring the arms of the Italian Navy, without a mural crown. The state ensign has a similar structure, but it features the Emblem of Italy in the center. The naval ensign showcases the arms of the Italian Navy topped by a crown. As a war flag, the tricolor with a dimension ratio of 1:1 is used.
Coat of Arms
The emblem was officially introduced on 5 May 1948. While it’s typically described as a coat of arms, it doesn’t obey traditional heraldic requirements.
The centerpiece of the emblem is a five-pointed star, or Star of Italy (Stella d’Italia). It is white and has a thin red outline. The star is the country’s oldest national symbol, its roots going back to the Graeco-Roman era. Back then, the area of modern-day Italy was associated with the star of Venus due to its location to the west of the Hellenic peninsula.
Behind the star, there is a five-spoked cogwheel symbolizing labor. According to the constitution, the country is “built on labor.” The cogwheel is surrounded by a wreath formed by an olive branch (to the left) and an oak branch (to the right).
The olive symbolizes the country’s will for peace, while the oak branch is used as the symbol of the strength and dignity of the Italians. Also, both of these plants are characteristic of the region. The red ribbon tying the branches together reads “REPUBBLICA ITALIANA.”
